1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to stationery supplies and more particularly to ring binder materials.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Ring binders include a cover, an elongated base or spine attached to the inside center of the cover, and two or more rings attached to the spine. The rings may be opened and closed individually, or a mechanism may be provided in the spine which opens and closes the rings simultaneously.
Binders are convenient in that pages may be inserted into or removed from any position within the binder without disturbing the remaining pages. To be utilized with a ring binder, however, the pages must be provided with marginal holes to engage the binder's rings.
Many types of papers, pads, catalogs, material samples, booklets, reference cards, etc. are not provided with such holes. For example, a legal pad including a rectangular, cardboard backing member and a pad of paper attached to the backing member is not typically provided with marginal holes. Also, spiral notepads are often incompatible with a ring binder.
A solution which partially addresses this problem is to provide such legal pads, spiral notebooks, booklets, reference cards, etc. with holes that can engage the rings of a binder. However, to utilize the modified pads and notebooks, it is necessary to frequently open and close the rings of the binder, producing considerable annoyance both to the user and to people around him.
In U.S. Pat. No. 1,843,771 of Kline a binding strip is disclosed including a strip of material which is gummed on one side and which is provided with holes along one longitudinal edge. The gummed sided of the strip is attached to a paper or pad, and the holes are engaged with the rings of a binder. The rings of the binder must be opened to engage or disengage the binding strip with the rings.
In U.S. Pat. No. 818,130 of Swan a detachable leaf for books is described which has a number of holes provided along one edge which are connected to the edge with L shaped slots. The holes engage staples of the book during the binding process and are permanently affixed thereto. Swan's leaf is not adapted for use with ring binders.